This invention relates to a dominator wire, and more particularly to a dominator wire used to repel or kill birds from the area of buildings, airports, feedlots or other structures or environs where the presence of birds would be a nuisance.
In many situations, the presence of birds is a particular problem. The birds interfere with the proper functioning of heating and cooling systems in commercial and residential buildings. Birds build nests or otherwise take up residence in houses, buildings and appurtenant structures. The natural wastes associated with the birds is not compatible with machinery or equipment for both health and aesthetic reasons. In agricultural areas, birds can cause considerable damage to livestock feed and other foodstuffs by either eating them or by spoiling them with bird wastes. The presence of birds in the area of airports is also becoming an increasing problem. They pose a very real danger at both commercial and military facilities. The birds are often drawn into the intake of jet engines causing malfunctions and the potential loss of human life. The impact of birds into the body of a plane can cause structural problems, and even routine dents still require considerable repair costs.
There have been proposals over the years to attempt to solve this problem. A typical solution is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,299,048 to Bayes and involves using electrified wires strung in the area to impart electrical shock to birds that may roost on the wires. Bayes shows an overhead cable that carries two exposed wires arranged parallel along opposite sides of the cable. When a bird lands on the wire, the bird's foot spans the two exposed wires and the bird receives a shock from contacting the exposed wires. In the Bayes' configuration, however, the current will flow along the path of least resistance which is simply from the front of the bird's foot to the back of the bird's foot. The electric shock is not transmitted through the body of the bird where the bird's vital organs are. the full effect of the electric shock is not imparted to the bird. A similar device is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,366,854 to Robinson.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,294,893 to Shaffer shows another wire device for controlling bird nuisance. This patent discloses a cable having two parallel wires separated by an insulating member, but in this device, the wires are only exposed at particular locations or points along the cable. Thus the effectiveness of this device is entirely dependent on where the bird happens to land.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an electrical dominator wire that imparts an electrical shock up one leg through the body and down the other leg of the bird when the bird lands on the wire. This causes the current to flow through the body of the bird imparting an electrical shock to the bird's vital organs which is much more effective in dissuading the bird from remaining on the wire. The amount of current can be regulated to either impart a light shock to simply stun the bird or, if desired, a heavier shock to kill the bird.
It is a feature of the present invention that a electrical dominator wire is provided that comprises short individual segments of exposed metal conductors of differing voltages and currents along the longitudinal axis of the wire so that when a bird lands on the wire, each foot of the bird will be touching an exposed segment of different voltage and current so that the bird will receive a shock of electricity through the bird's body.
It is an advantage of the present invention that a bird landing on the electrical dominator wire will be stunned or killed by an electrical shock effected by the differing currents regardless of the location on the wire that the bird lands.